Ice Castle
by Saturniia
Summary: What will Bombay do when the Ice Castle starts melting? The first BombayCasey fic out there, and the second MD fic overall to ever be posted to FF.net. Horribly old and unupdated.
1. I'm Melting....melting...

Ice Castles  
  
The characters are not mine. The plot, excepting the two quotes at the beginning, are mine. No, I do not like Charlie's invisible stepdad. This takes place 3 1/2 years after D3. Jan runs the skate shop. Got it? Good.  
  
  
  
  
"... and that was my window. Last winter, I gave Charlie that one."  
  
"Which window is mine? I want to live there."  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
  
I was younger. I was bolder.   
  
I was a fool.  
  
How could I have thought that just those simple words would convince her, a grown woman with a son who had become a man much too fast, to let me be a part of her life? How could I have thought that she'd wait for when I was truly ready to be that permanent a part of her life, to remarry? Now it's too late...  
  
"Coach?" Eighteen-year-old Charlie Conway asked, rapping his fingers against my doorframe. "Your secretary said I could come on back. I need to talk to you, badly."  
  
I snapped my head up, and ran my fingers over my face.  
  
"Sure, Charlie. Just c'mon in and sit down," I sighed.  
  
"Sorry about this," Charlie muttered, blushing lightly and accepting my invitation. "It's just... this is big, and well... Coach Orion is great for hockey and all, but this is one of those things that... well..."  
  
"What's wrong, Charlie?" I asked, concerned. Even after I had joined the Junior Goodwill Games committee, Charlie and I had often talked on the phone or written letters, along with occasionally chatting on the internet. It had never taken him this long to get to the point before.  
  
"It's about my stepdad," Charlie murmered, looking at his hands. "He... well... he's been cheating on my mom. And sometimes, when she calls him on it, he hits her."  
  
Immediately, I saw red. That bastard! How could he treat such a kind, sweet woman that way? What right does he have to harm even one hair on Casey's head? Just because he happened to marry that Earthbound angel, what right does that give him to abuse her? Quickly, though, I quelled my temper. Charlie may legally be an adult now, but he came to me, and how can I be what he needs if I can't even see straight?  
  
"Am I the first person you've told about this?" I asked.  
  
Charlie nodded.  
  
"Why haven't you told the police? They could do something about the hitting," I suggested.  
  
Charlie looked up at me, and I could see his eyes shining, though he fought to hold the tears back. This would be the first time I had seen him cry since Hans's funeral.  
  
"Jeff's on the squad," he whispered, referring to his stepdad. "And Mom doesn't need a restraining order, she needs a divorce. For that, she has to have a lawyer, and a friend. That's why I came to you."  
  
"Say you'll consider it, coach," Fulton Reed queried, stepping into the room.  
  
"Fulton!" Both Charlie and I cried.  
  
"Sorry, man. I know you wanted to do this on your own, but you know what they say," Fulton said, adressing Charlie.  
  
"'Ducks fly together'," all three of us finished.  
  
"And coach, Charlie's mom is as much a Duck as any one of us, especially when you were gone. If we needed someone to talk to, she was there. If we needed a friendly place to do our homework, the diner's doors were always open, and she'd usually give us a meal on credit if it was a week until our next paycheck and we were all out," Fulton explained, continuing.  
  
I nodded, remembering that Fulton's parents spent most of their time working, and the rest drinking. That explained much of why he loved hockey when he was younger, but never learned to skate.  
  
"Although I usually don't have a problem with that," Adam Banks added, stepping into the room. "She's a lot more a mother than my mom ever is. With my mom, it's always some banquet or seminar or something to go to with my dad, and when I'm dragged along, it's always, 'Our son Adam, the hockey player. He was on Team USA and made Varsity his freshman year in high school, you know.' With Casey, I'm just Adam. She stood in for my parents when they wouldn't show up for Senior Night, you know."  
  
"Adam," I asked, wounded. "Why didn't you ask me?"  
  
"You were busy setting up your office. Besides, Mom and Dad backed out five minutes before the pregame began, and as far as Bobby and Gary are concerned, well... they definately fit the 'Once a Hawk, always a Hawk' stereotype. Didn't want anything to do with a Duck, even if he's their little brother," Adam explained, shrugging and sticking his hands in his pockets.  
  
I nodded. Yes, I know that stereotype all too well. If I remember correctly, Adam and I were the only two to break that stereotype. In any case...  
  
"Besides," he continued. "Can we say a serious case of 'good coach-bad coach'? Or, as Averman might put it, 'the return of Captain Blood'?"  
  
"All right. So why are you three coming to me? There are some great divorce lawyers in the Twin Cities area, much better than I am. What can I do that they can't?" I asked.  
  
"Most of them would probably cheat Mom and me blind," Charlie explained. "Besides, if my mom's mother to us all, you're Dad number one. Hans, Jan, and Mr. Hall are two, three, and four, but Hans is... well..., and Jan and Mr. Hall wouldn't know divorce court from probate court if it came up and bit them."  
  
We all chuckled. Charlie did have a point. Mostly, though, I was touched by what Charlie had called me. "Dad". Not to be concieted or anything, but it is the truth. I took them in when nobody else would. When Charlie was still "Spazway", and when Fulton couldn't skate at all, and Adam had the choice to either skate with the Ducks or not at all. Yeah, I'd taught them a lot, but they'd taught me quite a bit as well. Who was I to turn them down when they... and Casey... probably need me the most. Besides, and I'm not being immodest, the court house's my house.  
  
"Okay, boys," I sighed, and slipped into "serious lawyer" mode. "The sooner you can get Casey to see me, the better."  
  
Fulton, Charlie, and Adam looked at each other. Their faces were pensive, but hopeful. Slowly, small smiles lit their faces.  
  
"All right!" 


	2. Hormones and Hoodlums

"Where were you?" Jeff asked the second Charlie stepped in the door. "Your mother was worried sick! And I had to wait until you got home to eat my supper, damnit!"  
  
"Ooh, Poor Jeff," Charlie cooed sarcastically. "You know what? Last time I checked you were a grown-up. Why didn't you just make yourself a damn peanut-butter-and-jelly if you were so damn hungry?"  
  
"Charles Edward Conway!" Casey snapped, shocked.  
  
"Sorry mom," Charlie apologized, then continued. "No, on second thought, you're not a grown-up, because you never grew up in the first place. I'm more of a man than you. Even Riley is more of a man than you!"  
  
"Oh really?" Jeff challenged.  
  
"Yeah. And you want to know why? It's because our mothers taught us to never hit a lady!" Charlie yelled.  
  
"Oh really, Spazway? Is that the truth? Well, your precious Coach Bombay isn't all that much of a man, either. I mean, come on! Community service coaching Pee-Wee hockey, all thanks to drunk driving?" Jeff asked.  
  
Charlie gasped, then swallowed his next sentence.  
  
"Yeah, it was me who brought him in. What do you say to that? Not so great to know that your precious role model is just a mortal man after all, is it? It bothers you, doesn't it?" Jeff taunted.  
  
"No. As a matter of fact, it doesn't. You know why? Because he took the chance, and changed. He could've just treated us like shit... sorry mom... like our last three coaches had. He could've turned his back the second he had a chance, but you know what? He didn't. He stuck with us to the end. He taught me how to maneuver. He taught Fulton how to skate. He brought Adam onto the damn team. And, with his help, we beat the Hawks at Championships. For God's sake, he's had more than enough chances to turn his back on us. He could've split the first chance he got. He could've turned down the position on Team USA. He could've turned a deaf ear when we were in a legal battle at Eden Hall, but he didn't. He's even put up with lip from Hans, Jan, Mr. Hall, and my mom! If that doesn't constitute being a man, I don't know what does," Charlie retorted.  
  
"Oh, yeah, that's real manly. Ever wonder why he never turned his back on you? Ever ask your mother, that slut?" Jeff growled.  
  
Charlie's restraint snapped. "Coach's not you... he would never... Just... just shut up!" He snapped, and stormed upstairs to his room.  
  
"Not so much fun to look up to Bombay now, now is it?" Jeff called.  
  
Silence was his only reply. Suddenly, the silence was broken by the violent-sounding strains of Limp Bizket's "Break Stuff".  
  
Jeff noticed Casey staring at him.  
  
"Well, what are you looking at? Your son's home safe! Get me some food!" He yelled.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
We were at the Winter Festival again. Casey was laughing about something or other I had said, and I had my arm securely around her waist. In my peripheral vision, I could see the Ducks, and among them, Charlie chatting with some nice girl, looking over at me with raised eyebrows every so often. Just like Charlie to make sure I treat his mother right.  
  
Suddenly, Fulton came up to Charlie and his companion, and began trying to "make nice" with the girl. Immediately, Charlie's attention shifted from his mother to his friends, and he and Fulton engaged in a small game of play-fighting.  
  
I looked over at Casey, and laughed. She smiled as well, and her eyes were sparkling. I leaned over to kiss her, and she didn't pull away. It was wonderful. I could feel her in my arms, and I could taste her lips. In fact, they tasted just like... the manila envelopes I had laid out for the Stahl case?!!!!  
  
My eyes snapped open, and I spat the offending taste out, thoroughly disgusted. Dear Lord, what the Hell was I thinking, falling asleep at work? I'm almost as bad as I was before the Ducks!  
  
Before I had more time to pursue that train of thought, the telephone rang.  
  
"Hello? Law office of Bombay, Gordon Bombay speaking," I said, then unsuccessfully held back a yawn.  
  
"Coach?" Came Charlie's voice, and almost above it, I could hear the sounds of a group the guys listen to now... Limp Bizket, I think.  
  
"Charlie?" I asked. "Are you okay?"  
  
"Yeah," he replied. "Sorta."  
  
"Well, could you please turn the music down, if you're able? I can barely hear you," I explained.  
  
"Sorry," he sighed.  
  
"Oh," I replied. "Don't be. Just... why are you calling? Adam, Fulton, and you left my office about... half an hour ago!"  
  
"It's about Jeff," Charlie began, and didn't get any farther before I interrupted.  
  
"Is Casey all right?"  
  
"Yeah, Coach, don't worry. Mom's doing fine. Nothing worse than normal," Charlie muttered.  
  
"Nothing worse than normal?!"  
  
"Just yelling. No hitting, as of yet."  
  
"Well, there's something," I grumbled. "Anyway, what's the problem?"  
  
"You really like her, don't you?" Charlie asked.  
  
I absently clicked one of my pens against the desk. "Like whom?"  
  
"My mom."  
  
"She's a nice woman. That's one of the reasons I agreed to help on the case."  
  
"A nice woman, or a VERY nice woman?"  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"I mean, do you like her, or do you LIKE her?"  
  
"Charlie, where's this little tirade heading?" I asked.  
  
"Nowhere. Jeff was just being a prick, again," Charlie sighed. "He was sorta implying that... well you stayed around because you and my mom were... agh!"  
  
Although Charlie was being vague, I understood him perfectly. And my body responded in kind. Agh, indeed! I'm not Charlie's age anymore, for God's sake!  
  
"Uh... well... no!" I spluttered, then continued. "Not that your mother's not a very nice and attractive woman, Charlie, but she and I are just friends. There is and was nothing clandestine, unusual, or R-rated going on between us at all. Does knowing that make you feel any better?"  
  
"Yeah, Coach," Charlie said. "Suprisingly enough, it does."  
  
"All right," I sighed. "Is that all for now?"  
  
"Yeah, just... when are you going to talk to her about getting a divorce?"  
  
"You mean the divorce is strictly your idea?"  
  
"Uh... well..."  
  
"Listen, Charlie. I don't like butting into an area of Casey's life where she doesn't explicitly invite me, but if what you're saying is true, I'll make an exception..."  
  
"So, when are you going to talk to her?" Charlie interrupted.  
  
"I'll stop by the diner tomorrow, at lunch," I decided.  
  
"Aw, man," Charlie sighed.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Eden Hall doesn't have open campus, even for seniors!"  



	3. More Like Charlie

  
  
Miraculously, I made it home without punching a wall out. I flicked on the light to my high-rise apartment, and was again reminded of exactly how... cold the rooms seemed. Sure, Jan came by sometimes to relive old times, but besides a few dirty dishes in the sink, my old Ducks jerseys, and a few photographs of "my" kids and me, there was absolutely nothing to indicate that the room was lived in. Frankly, most of the time, it wasn't.  
  
Sighing, I flopped down on my armchair, and fingered the key for a seldom-used lock. Rolling my eyes at how incredibly adolescent I was being, I unlocked the drawer, opened it, and pulled out a small, black box. When I opened it, I couldn't help a wistful smile that graced my features with its presence. It was nothing much, that little ring in the box, but at one point, it had symbolized my entire future. I'd bought it with three week's pay after starting with the Waves, and at the end of the season, I planned to ask Casey to marry me. But then my knee went :::pfft!:::, and Casey married Jeff, and the rest is history. Sure, I'd met the guy once, and I didn't like him. Now, I'm wondering where the Hell my lawyer instincts were at that point, but I guess I thought it was still my broken heart talking... If my fuzzy memories serve me right, he was also the officer who had brought me in for drunk driving a week to the day before I met Charlie and the Ducks... and Casey. In any case, I don't really need the ring for anything anymore. After a marriage to a son-of-a-bitch like Officer Collins, I doubt Casey's all that eager to run into any man's open arms, excepting her son's.  
  
Suddenly, my cell phone rang.  
  
"Hello, Gordon Bombay speaking. Who is this?" I inquired.  
  
"Don't give up just yet, Gordon," a familiar Scandinavian voice advised. "There is always hope."  
  
"Jan," I sighed. "How do you always seem to know what I'm feeling and how I'm doing, even when I don't want you to?"  
  
"Because, one time, an eighteen-year-old boy called myself and my brother his fathers, and ever since then, I've tried to act as one. Besides, Scandinavians read minds, or didn't you know that?" Jan asked.  
  
"Oh, really?" I laughed; thinking Jan had really gone off the deep end this time, although he was right about the "father" comment. I guess sometimes I'm more like Charlie than I'm willing to admit.  
  
"Yes," he replied seriously. "Besides, I've finally figured out how to work that blasted telephone you gave me last Christmas."  
  
I looked up. Sure enough, there was Jan, standing in my doorway.  
  
"Come in, old friend," I laughed.  
  
"All right," Jan said. "You know what, though? I think I really can read minds, because I said to myself just a few minutes ago, 'I think Gordon will need to talk to a friend tonight'. And I was right, so here I am! Now, what is the problem, besides that this old man does not know how to shut off his own telephone?"  
  
"It's nothing, Jan," I sighed.  
  
"And 'nothing' is going to make you throw away the ring you bought for Casey?" He asked.  
  
"Yes! I mean no! I mean, I don't know," I sighed, burying my face in my hands.  
  
"Gordon," Jan sighed. "There is always hope. You bought that ring for Casey when you had nothing. Nothing! Now you are going to throw it away because the road is becoming a little rough?"  
  
"Jan, she's married..." I began.  
  
"To a dangerous man! And Charlie came to you to help her out of that marriage. Ducks fly together, you said. Now will you break that promise to your family?" Jan interrupted.  
  
"Eloquently put, Jan, eloquently put. But my heart was shattered once when Casey married Jeff. I took it as a personal rejection. I just don't think I can stand having my heart broken again."  
  
Then, Jan said something that made my heart stop.  
  
"Can you stand never knowing how she really feels?"  
  
I just stared at him. After a moment, I found my voice again.  
  
"You know what, Jan? It's late. Do you need a ride back to the skate shop? This neighborhood is dangerous. You shouldn't be out this late... are you going to be all right?"  
  
"I drove myself, Gordon," Jan replied. "And just think about what I said. Speaking of the skate shop, why could you not open your law office above it? You know I have extra rooms?"  
  
"You know why, Jan," I sighed. "I love skating, and the Ducks, too much. I'd be downstairs every five seconds, checking on one of the kids, or gawking like a Pee-Wee over all the new stock. I'd never get any work done, and you know it."  
  
"So? Ed loves bowling, but he has a bowling alley and a law practice. Plus, your law career's as much a part of the Ducks story as the shop is," Jan defended.  
  
"Ed's a television show! Not real life!" I cried. Then I stopped, and looked at him like he'd just grown another head.  
  
"Wait a second. You have a television now?"  
  
"There are commercials on the radio, Gordon," Jan sighed.  
  
"Good NIGHT, Jan," I grumbled, shooing him towards the door.  
  
"I'm going, I'm going," he laughed. "Just think about what I said."  
  
"All right, Jan," I sighed, finally succeeding in seeing my old friend to the door.  
  
After closing the door behind him, I rested my cheek against the cool wood. A flood of memories came rushing back. Casey's face when I caught her eye at the JV/Varsity game the Ducks' freshman year. The look on Charlie's face that afternoon, and at Hans's funeral, and when we won the Junior Goodwill Games. Teaching Fulton how to skate. Casey's face when she was telling me her story at the Winter Festival, and the first time I saw her... she was So mad at me!  
  
I really hate to say it, but maybe Jan's right. One More Chance is all, though...  
  



	4. Darn Dwayne!

A/N: I do not own the song... I still do not own the characters (dangit!)... I do own the plot.  
  
  
  
As I drove to Eden Hall Monday morning, I couldn't help but ask myself how I got roped into this sort of thing. I mean, I don't mind driving the guys or girls to school if they miss the bus, or had to fly home over the weekend and were just coming back from the airport, but I mean... this was Dwayne.  
  
After four years in the city, Dwayne's style had changed a lot. Most obviously, the western accent that screamed "Howdy, y'all, I'm from Texas," had sovtened to a warm, yet ambiguous, drawl. His hair had grown into a comfortable, shaggy mess that artfully hid his prominent ears, and, often, his eyes. His older shirts, most of them Garth Brooks-esque were slowly replaced by more commonplace tees and sweatshirts, although I noticed a few George Strait and Garth Brooks tour T-shirts in the mess he likes to call his suitcase. Combat boots replaced cowboy boots, and by anybody's definition, he was just another Twin Cities teen on the street... that is, until you saw the room he shared with Portman. PORTMAN, of all people! All I have to say is, thank God for headphones!  
  
Anyway, in the boys' room, you could clearly see which side was hwose. Portman's walls were littered with family pictures of his sister and godson, old and new Ducks newspaper clippings, heavy metal posters and the occasional Playboy Playmate, which he managed to hide from the faculty during room checks; Dwayne's, on the other hand, featured the room's window and a large poster of Lila McCann, along with a smaller, autographed photograph of blues artist Shannon Curfman.  
  
Other qualities Dwayne managed to keep intact was his youlthful enthusiasm and childlike curiosity, with which he was currently clicking through my car's radio stations.  
  
"Dwayne!" I snapped. "Just pick a station and leave it there!"  
  
"Hey, y'all!" He beamed. "Here's an okay new one! Whaddaya think of it, Charlie?"  
  
Charlie groaned from the backseat as we all fell into silence. The sounds of whoever-the-hell-it-was filled my car.  
  
  
"Mrs. Steven Rudy, you don't know what you do to me, every night I dream one day of being with you. Mrs. Steven Rudy, you're the neighborhood beauty, but that wedding ring's as ugly as your husband is to you..."  
  
  
"Here we are," I sighed, pulling up outside the school's gates. "Have a nice day!"  
  
"Thanks, Coach!" Dwaynes said,bouncing out of the car.  
  
"Coach?" Charlie asked, as he climbed out of the backseat. "You really going to talk to Mom at lunch today?"  
  
"Yes, Charlie," I sighed.  
  
"All right, all right," he laughed. "Thanks again for the ride... Dad."  
  
"You're welcome, Charlie," I replied to his retreating form. Then, I shifted the car into first gear, and drove away.  
  
  
"Imagination...Infatuation... I'm what she deserves.  
I wonder if she... thinks about me... the way I think about her!"  
  
  
"I hear you, buddy," I muttered to myself. This is definatly one of those songs where I'm not sure if I should thank Dwayne... or kill him. Eh, I'll worry about it later.  
  
Now, there's only a few more hours until D-day. 


	5. Hypothetically (and Darn Dwayne's song r...

Ice Castles 5  
  
  
I pulled up in front of the diner about five minutes before noon. I'd changed the radio station after Dwayne got out, and yet another innane pop song was gracing my ears. Do these DJ's play no good rock before 5 in the evening? It's all either pop, or rap, or raprock, or... whatever the hell that new N*SYNC song was supposed to be. Anyway, the song playing at the moment was by a guy called Uncle Kracker... sounds like something Jesse would call me when he got really mad. Once again, the assholes at the radio stations were reading my mind, and the tune wasn't helping my dry throat or sweaty palms any.  
  
  
I'm not worried about the ring you wear  
'cause as long as no one knows than nobody can care.  
You're feeling guilty and I'm well aware,  
but you don't look ashamed and baby I'm not scared...  
  
  
Not scared? Not scared, my ass! I don't think I'd ever been more scared in my life! Jeff's twice my size (which isn't hard, I'm a pretty small guy), and he had my criminal record, the whole one DUI arrest, at his fingertips, along with God knows how many contacts to try to dig up shit on me. Add that to the fact that I was about to come face to face with the angel I dream about each night, and I'm very suprised I didn't piss my pants.  
  
Anyway, with shaking hands and trembling feet, I climbed out of the car. After taking a deep breath to calm myself, I straightened my jacket, and marched (well, not literally, but you know what I mean) into the diner.  
  
"Gordon!" A buxom brunette called from behind the counter.  
  
"Willie!" I replied in kind. "How's it going? How's little Li?"  
  
"Everything's great," Willimina replied, and then smiled as she gushed on about her five-year-old adopted son, who is apparently now scheduled to begin kindergarden in the fall. "Oh, and Casey isn't here yet. You want me to get you something now, or you gonna wait 'till she gets here?"  
  
"Black coffee, please, I'll add my own sugar and milk," I replied. "And if you don't mind, I'd like to talk to Casey for maybe... ten minutes before she begins her shift. Is that any problem?"  
  
"No problem at all," Willie replied, as she prepared the coffee. "So Conway came to see you? That's good. He's had to grow up much too fast with Jeff around... even for him. You going to be her 'knight in shining armor'?"  
  
I raised my eyebrows.  
  
"No, Willie," I sighed, then lowered my voice to joke with her. "Just her lawyer in a neatly-pressed suit."  
  
Willie chuckled, and went to serve another customer.  
  
At that point, the bells on the door jangled cheerfully, and Casey shuffled in. It might be just my imagination, but I swear I saw her face light up when she saw me.  
  
"Casey!" I greeted.  
  
"Gordon? What are you doing here?" She asked.  
  
"Having lunch. Don't worry, I checked all my resources before I came. It isn't against the law to eat lunch with my friend, who also happens to be a beautiful, efficient waitress at the diner where I oh-so-conveniently happened to stop," I joked. "So what about it?"  
  
"But my shift," Casey stalled.  
  
"Five minutes, chica," Willie interrupted as she breezed to the pick-up counter.  
  
I patted the stool next to me. "C'mon. Just a little lunchtime conversation between two friends."  
  
"All right," she sighed as she cautiously sat down next to me.  
  
"So, how's Jeff doing?" I asked, out of the blue. Might as well cut to the chase, after all.  
  
"Uh... he's all right..." She stuttered.  
  
I spotted a dark bruise in the crook of her elbow, right before her waitress's uniform began.  
  
"Did he do that to you?" I asked, both hoping he didn't and praying he did, just so I'd have some reason to jump the man in a dark alley and exact fitting punishment for hurting Casey.  
  
"No!" She hissed, just a little too quickly.  
  
"All right," I sighed. Hopefully, I'm acting enough like the topic no longer interests me.  
  
"So, I hear you stood in for Mr. and Mrs. Banks on Senior Night," I stated, trying a different line of approach.  
  
"Yes," she replied.  
  
"That was great of you. I'd have done it myself, but..."  
  
"Your law practice."  
  
"Yeah. You know, Adam was really flattered you did that. He told me yesterday that he considers you a second mother. Sometimes, a better one, I think he added."  
  
"Oh?"  
  
"Mmm-hmm," I muttered around a mouthful of coffee, then swallowed. "They all do, you know. That's why Charlie and Fulton joined my visit with Adam yesterday. They know, as do you and I, that Jeff is no good for you. Now, I'm not any expert on divorce cases, but if you'd allow me, I'd love to help you out of this jam. After all, you're familly, princess."  
  
"I couldn't," she gasped. "He's too dangerous. Where would Charlie stay? Where would I?"  
  
"Stay with me," I blurted out before I haad time to think.  
  
"NO. I couldn't impose, and besides... life is like the sculptures we saw at the Winter Festival. Cold and fleeting and melting before our eyes. I couldn't possibly draw you into my reality."  
  
I became bold then, and gripped her hand. "Then let me pull you into mine," I whispered.  
  
"No... I... i.... it's time for my shift," she gasped. Rising, she gently disentangled her hand from mine, but before she stepped under the booth, she turned back to me and asked a question.  
  
"If I did choose to get a divorce... hypothetically speaking of course, but if I did... would you really be my lawyer?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"And... hypothetically and not to impose... If I did move out, you'd let me and Charlie stay at your apartment?"  
  
"Well, I was thinking more along the lines of Charlie rooming with Dwayne and Portman, or Russ," I laughed. "I doubt he'd like my apartment nearly as much... but yeah, hypothetically speaking, I would."  
  
"Well, then, thank you. Hypothetically, of course," she said, a small smile gracing her eyes.  
  
"Of course," I replied, returning the smile and raising my cup in a form of salute.  
  
"Anything to eat, Gordon?" Willie asked, sensing the conversation was over.  
  
"Just a BLT, thanks," I ordered.  
  
"Coming right up," Willie replied, as Casey turned to help some of the other customers.  
  
As they worked, I tuned out and listened to the music playing in the background. NOT AGAIN!!!  
  
  
Sometimes Mrs. Rudy comes crying late at night  
'cause her and Mr. Ugly have had another fight  
we talk a while and when she smiles and then she says thank you  
I tell her that she's welcome, just like any friend would do.  
I only wish she knew...  
  
  
Damn straight, man, damn straight. 


	6. Ice Castle Princess

Ice Castles 6  
  
  
I didn't see Casey for about a week and a half after our visit. However, I saw at least one of the Ducks everyday. They knew what was going on, but luckily, Jeff hadn't found out about the rondezvous, and Casey hadn't been abused again, or so Charlie told me.  
  
Anyway, I was sitting in my dad's old, overstuffed armchair, the one comfortable piece of furniture in my apartment, staring at Casey's ring, when the doorbell rang. Abruptly, I snapped the case closed and locked it in its drawer. Then I rushed to the door and looked through the peephole. Soft, golden curls met my vision, softened by the cream-like skin underneath. Casey!  
  
In my haste to open the door, I must have fumbled with the lock about three times before succeeding in opening the door. Then, there she stood before me, and I didn't know what to say. But she didn't face me.  
  
"Ah... C-c-casey!" I stuttered. "Come... come in! It's great to see you. You should really excuse me and the way my apartment looks and everything, I haven't had much time to clean it, what with my office and helping Jan out at the skate shop and everything..."  
  
I trailed off, noticing she still hadn't faced me.  
  
"Casey, is everything all right?" I whispered.  
  
Slowly, she turned her face toward me, and I caught sight of her other cheek. There, superimposed upon her delicate features, was a shiner roughly the size of his fist. I'm gonna kill him!  
  
"Gordon," she whispered, trying not to cry. "Hypotheticly is... is now reality. Charlie... he's moved in with Russ, but... I hope you don't mind that I came here first. I'll live in the skate shop with Jan, starting tomorrow, if I'm an imposition. But you offered, so I'm here. If you'll have me, I mean."  
  
"Uh...oh... of course, Princess," I managed to choke out, gently leading her into my apartment and closing the cool oak door behind us. It took all my self control to resist taking Casey into my arms then and there and rocking her like a little girl, holding her until all her troubles melted away. Still, though, it would be unwise to do so at that time, so I simply led her to the armchair and sat her down.  
  
"So, uh... do you want to talk about it?" I whispered.  
  
"No," she sobbed, burying her face in her hands. I could see her beginning to come undone. "It's all my fault anyway."  
  
"Shh..shh... c'mon, Princess. That's not true and you know it. It's Jeff's fault for not treating you like royalty," I soothed, sliding her over on the armchair until I could sit down, and then gathering her into my lap. I hate to say this, but I took some small pleasure from having her in my arms. She's small, and delicate, and smells slightly of the shampoo she uses. It's a good, clean smell, almost like my mother's garden used to smell after the rain.  
  
"But I'm not royalty," she whispered.  
  
"Yes you are," I chuckled, twining my clumsy fingers with her small ones and pulling her closer. "You're my Ice Castle Princess."  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Man," Russ said, looking over at Charlie. "Where'd you say your mom was staying, again?"  
  
"Coach Bombay's," Charlie replied.  
  
"You can call him 'Dad' around me if you like. I know how it is between him and you guys that had him in PeeWees. Besides, you might as well get used to the idea. Bet you'll have a new brother or sister before the end of the year, anyway."  
  
"Mom and Coach Bombay? Nah," Charlie disagreed.  
  
"Why not? I mean, your mom's still young, and she's a very attractive lady. If any of the sistas here at school looked as good for their age as your mama looks for hers, I'd go out with them in an instant. Besides, you ever really look at the way they look at each other each time they think 'we kids' aren't looking? It's the same look my brother gives Kameelah! And they're getting married this summer!" Russ said.  
  
Charlie just guffawed and pulled the fitted sheet over the matress with practiced ease.  
  
"I'm serious, man! I'll bet he already has a ring picked out and everything!"  
  
"Yeah, right, Russ," Charlie muttered.  
  
"C'mon, man, what could be better? You already look up to Bombay as a father figure anyway, and he likes you. You know he's smitten with her, and we all know he wouldn't hurt her for shit... not purposely, anyway. So what's your problem, man?"  
  
Charlie sighed, and flopped backwards onto his half-made bed.  
  
"Jeff," he stated. 


	7. The Quack Attack is Back, Jack!

A/N: Finally, an update! I have no idea what I'm going to do in the courtroom, maybe I'll just skip it and post the results. Anyway, this story is coming to a close. Maybe I'll write a sequel, maybe not.  
  
Three weeks later, they were all there… just like they said they would be. Adam, Fulton, and Charlie huddled, talking anxiously. They knew Jeff knew they were the ones that came to me. Russ hovered back and forth between the Trio and Terry and Jesse Hall, who he'd just met (Jesse greeted Adam with his customary "Hey, cakeater! Some things never change). Portman occasionally joined them as well, but for the most part he tried to put the moves on Tammy Duncan… did I forget to mention she's a nationally-known figure skater now? He was competing for her affections, because it seemed Louis had also taken a liking to her.  
  
Tommy, who alternated between shooting death glares at Portman and busily looking everywhere except the older teenager, became involved in short- track a few years ago. Between the agility he learned in figure skating, and his love for aggressive speed, the sport's perfect for him. He made it onto the Junior National team, but was beat out for the Olympics.  
  
Karp and Peter were awkwardly standing in a corner, conversing quietly, until Averman and Guy gathered them into a conversation about something, I couldn't catch what. Julie and Goldberg were arguing over who's the better goalie (some things never change), and Connie and Ken were discussing something with Casey, Jan, and Mr. Hall in undertones. Even Ted was there with his daughter, shifting nervously from foot to foot, but eager to help.  
  
I looked over the group, amazed. Here before me was the Ducks, every one of them, the team I never wanted but couldn't get rid of. It made me think of how great a family I had, though my own biological father was long gone. What a wonderful feeling to know that we rally behind one of our own, Casey, at a time like this. What I couldn't understand, though, was why all of them decided to show up. Only five, maybe ten, needed to.  
  
As a result of my confusion, I ended up making the foolhardy mistake of voicing my opinions. If I remember correctly, my exact words were "So why are all of you here?"  
  
"Ducks fly together!" The resounding answer came, followed by many duck-calls. All of it was much too loud for a courthouse corridor.  
  
"Shh…" I scolded. "What're you trying to do, get me thrown out before the trial even begins?"  
  
They all broke into laughter, even Casey. God, I love to see her smile.  
  
"Case 15385 heard next in the courtroom," the bailiff said, walking into the door behind me. We all filed in after her, most of us tugging nervously at our ties or, in the case of the women, skirts.  
  
Jeff wasn't going to let her go easy, and it was our job to make sure he leaves her at all. I fingered a small box in my pocket… it'd gotten too dangerous to leave it in my drawer, Casey's one flaw is that she's a snoop… and took a deep breath, drawing the proper case-file from my briefcase. 


End file.
